Huskies weather the rain

By Frank Rusnak

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Sunny California. Yeah, right.

As NIU’s bowl game was set to begin, the start of the game was delayed 23 minutes because of a power outage as rain continued to pour down on the already drenched and increasingly muddy field.

One NIU fan held a yellow ‘Caution – Wet Floor’ sign proudly in the air as Spartan Stadium acted as a 30,456-seat reservoir.

“I’ll never forget the conditions of the game, that’s for sure,” NIU linebacker Javan Lee said.

With a game that kicked off at 8:23 PST, the chilly, wet night didn’t look like it was working in favor of NIU’s notorious running attack at the beginning.

Troy jumped out to a 14-0 lead before NIU running back Garrett Wolfe broke free for a 50-yard touchdown run with 4:46 left in the first quarter.

“I’m just beat up,” Wolfe said, who soon after the score took a helmet to his right hip which sidelined him the entire second half.

As the Huskies slowly got acclimated to the adverse weather conditions, the Trojans slowly slowed their pace.

The Huskies finished with 213 rushing yards, as backup A.J. Harris exploded for 119 second-half yards.

“It was just a puddle of mud,” added Lee, who finished with six tackles. “The ground was just soggy, about five inches deep. You couldn’t cut, couldn’t break; take on a blocker and it’s over and you’re on the ground. It was real fun to play in though. I’ll never forget it.”